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Rutland County Audubon Marks 15 Years of Monthly Vermont eBird Monitoring Walks at West Rutland Marsh

July 14, 2016  |  Kent McFarland

Over 2,000 participants, 666 miles walked, 180 bird checklists recorded comprising 149 species, and its all available for research, education and conservation at Vermont eBird. The monthly bird monitoring walk started on August 16, 2001 at West Rutland Marsh when 15 participants teamed up with Rutland County Audubon Society to record 45 species (including a rare Least Bittern); and it’s been happening every month since.

Mt. Mansfield Yields Avian Surprises

July 11, 2016  |  Chris Rimmer

VCE’s seventh weekly visit to our long-term study site on the Mt. Mansfield ridgeline yielded a few avian surprises, including the only Indigo Bunting recorded in 25 years of field work.

Mountain Bird Watch: A Real White Mountain Adventure!

July 11, 2016  |  Amber Wolf

After four weeks (for me) and 11 survey routes later, the Mountain Bird watch (MBW) season has come to an end, but of course not without a few great stories and moments up in the mountains!

Vermont Breeding Loon Population Rises Again

July 7, 2016  |  Eric Hanson

Just when we anticipate that the Common Loon population breeding in Vermont will remain steady, the loons find even more places to nest. Six new nesting pairs and the first nest for Chittenden County have been documented this year.

June 2016 iNaturalist Vermont Photo-observation of the Month

July 6, 2016  |  Kent McFarland

Congratulations to Susan Elliott for winning the June 2016 iNaturalist Vermont photo-observation of the month contest. The image of a White-tailed Deer fawn was the most popular photo-observation as measured by clicked ‘favs’. Visit iNaturalist Vermont, a project…

A Field Guide to July

July 5, 2016  |  Kent McFarland

The spring birding seasons is winding down. But as the dawn bird chorus now fades from our northern woodlands, fields and wetlands erupt in the sparkle and drama of summer insects. Here’s a short guide to some of the other glitter on the wing this month.

A Flower Trap

July 5, 2016  |  Kent McFarland

With its foot stuck in a milkweed flower like a Chinese finger trap, the European Skipper was struggling to free itself. On another flower nearby only a leg remained from…

A Water Lily’s World

July 5, 2016  |  Kent McFarland

At the height of summer many ponds are covered in lily pads. Moose munch on them. Beaver and muskrat devour them. Deer consider them delicious. But peer a little closer and you’ll find an amazing miniature world inhabiting each floating leaf.

iNaturalist Vermont Flies Past 100,000 Observations

June 28, 2016  |  Kent McFarland

With a tap on his smartphone and a click to submit to iNaturalist Vermont, Charlie Hohn added the 100,000th record on Friday, a beautiful Pink Lady’s Slipper orchid.

Finding Ferns

June 27, 2016  |  Kent McFarland

We found 22 fern species during an iNaturalist Vermont walk with interns and citizen naturalists on a two-hour tour of Marsh-Billings-Rockefeller National Historical Park. Led by VCE’s Kent McFarland and Park ecologist, Kyle Jones, the group was able to document 17 of those with photos in iNaturalist Vermont, a project of the Vermont Atlas of Life.

A Ghost in the Making Released Online

June 23, 2016  |  Vermont Center for Ecostudies

A Ghost in the Making: Searching for the Rusty-patched Bumble Bee, an enchanting short film about the disappearance of the Rusty-patched Bumble Bee and one man’s journey to find out what’s happened to it, is now available to watch online.

Vermont iNaturalist Discovers a New Population of a Rare Dragonfly

June 22, 2016  |  Kent McFarland

As a novice photographer, James Welch enjoys documenting the biodiversity he sees around his home turf. With his camera in hand while walking his dog last week, Welch stumbled upon a rare find.